The War

Orders were being barked out from the commander and soldiers were scurrying around trying to find their appropriate positions. One could tell he seemed frustrated, major loses and not one victory over the couple of years could do that to a commander like him. Rumors had gone round about how unlucky the platoon has been and how many pathetic lives they’ve lost, with such a reputation one would still be wondering why they were still put on the battlefield. A question even the grim looking commander didn’t know the answer too. Fighting for their hopeless country and an even more hopeless government who never seems to bat an eyelid over the poor lives lost and yet here they were, on the same spot they seemed to occupy for the last fifteen years and fighting yet another powerful country who would no doubt take most of their soldiers out once again. Tom surveyed the area, and much to his dismay the place was still in disarray. They were supposed to be setting up to ambush the enemy and might he add a tactic as old as time that never seemed to work. Settling down in a corner, he closed his eyes and let his mind wonder off just the way it does minutes before battle. The sun had just set and the night breeze was becoming cooler and cooler by the minute. After frantically looking for her in their enormous house, he decided to walk out through the back and there she was. Golden locks that stopped at her mid back were swaying to fluid movements of the wind, her sun dress that hugged her perfectly was flair at the bottom and it was also moving with the wind. It was like they were obeying its every command. He approached her and hugged her from the back, he had always loved her smell and so he nestled his head on her neck and inhaled her scent implanting it in his brain so he won’t forget. They stood there for minutes in comfortable silence and listened to the sound of the waves and winds. “Come on let’s go inside, you will catch a cold at this rate”, he told her. She gave only the slightest nod and he took her hand and led her back inside. Looking back once more to enjoy the scenery, he shut the door. He opened those eyes and an all too familiar pang hit his chest, he could never seem to get her off his mind. He rolled the pendant he had subconsciously removed from his pockets in his hands. It was the last gift she had given him before it happened, he brought it to his nose and just like always her scent lingered on the metallic object and he took the moment to enjoy her somewhat presence. It was impossible for a scent like that to still linger after so many years of it being tossed around but still he was grateful that it was there. He still wonders why he decided to throw his life away all those year ago to join the army and he had a feeling it had to do with when the love of his life left him for good in his hands. She was what held him down, she gave him purpose and now he holds resentment for whoever took away the one good thing he had in his life. Placing the pendant where it belongs, close to his heart, he thought to himself that it wouldn’t matter where the pendant was because she would forever remain a part of him. Pulling his mind back to the present, he stormed off just as the fight was to begin. The battle seemed unending and much to the commander’s disapproval most of the soldiers were injured and were still being treated. The thought of retreating crossed his mind; the only thing that he wishes would never come to him while they were on the field. However, unlike other times he wanted to sit this one through and even if he knew it would still end badly, he still had a flicker of hope. Looking through his plans once more, he decided to come up with a new strategy that would at least give them better advantage and get the rest of the soldiers to safety before he lost more viable soldiers. Tom laid low on his belly mashed between two dead bodies and tried to squirm free. After much attempt he finally got out, crouching just enough so he would not be spotted he looked round and as far as he could tell this battle would not end well for either him or his comrades if they didn’t get to safety soon. Scurrying away he got closer to another one of his moving associates, Joe. “What’s the situation back at the commander’s?”, he asked “Flin just said that the commander is looking at a new strategy, what’s your take on the situation?” Joe asked him. Looking down at his blood clad shirt he answered, “Honestly it would be better if we’d just get the rest of us down to safety before we lose more soldiers”. Joe nods in agreement. Hidden perfectly well behind a barricade, they decided that Joe would throw a grenade and that would spare them enough time to run away. “1, 2,” Tom counts “Go!” Joe shouts as he throws the grenade. They both take off, maneuvering their way through roadblocks and narrowly missing the dead bodies that have somehow camouflaged with the mud. Shots were fired from different places and barely missed Tom’s head; he sprints faster with his rifle bouncing harshly at his back, he shouts at Joe to go faster and he dares to look back only to stop abruptly in his tracks. Joe is sprawled face down in the mud; Tom rushes over to access the wounds. Turning Joe over Tom sees a clear shot to his chest and Joe is desperately gasping for air. “Hey, hey stay with me Joe. You are going to be alright okay?” he says. Spitting out more blood and smiling Joe manages to asks, “Hey can you do something for me?” “Anything”, Tom replies “Could you at least tell my family I died in an awesome way?” Not finding the humor in the situation Tom says, “You’ve got a bullet in you and the only thing you care about is having an awesome death story?!” Managing a strained laugh he says, “And also watch over my little boy for me so he doesn’t end up like his sorry ass dad” “Oh come on Junior knows you are a badass dad”, Tom retorts Sniffing Joe says. “Also tell Helena that I love her” “She will always know you love her Joe” “Yeah she will won’t she?” he asks and Tom only nods. “Tom?” Joe calls out “Yeah” “This is not your fault okay?” “Yes it is” Shaking his head Joe says, “No it’s not, it’s not your fault that you came up with a plan to get us both out safely” “And it would have been worth it if we both did get out safely” “It happens and no matter what don’t let anybody hold you responsible for my death, yourself including” “Alright Joe if that’s your last wish then so be it” “I love you man”, Joe says out of the blue “Dude, that’s not a manly thing to say”, Tom laughs “Oh come on say it back before I go” “I love you too man”. And with that Joe goes limp smiling in Tom’s hands. Once again another good thing in his life has been taken away right before his eyes and simultaneously in his hands. It takes him a few slow seconds to realize what is actually happening and another slower second before he can react, it all happens too fast for him and before he knows it he is thrown far away from Joe’s body. It takes about a million seconds for him before he finally lands with a loud thud on the ground. For some reason he can’t make out any words or voice his pain and there is suddenly a ringing sound going on in his head. Grunting and trying to shout for help at the same time, these two actions take a bulk of his strength and before he knows it everything goes black.                                                                                           ⁕⁕⁕ Tom’s parents had heard the news and were soon by the side of their son in his hospital room. Tom was strapped to a lot of tubes and barely looked himself, even in the state of unconsciousness his feature was one that was still etched with so much anger and hate. He had been out for almost four days now and his parents had only left his room for a change of clothes and were praying earnestly that he would make it through. The doctor walked in and Tom’s parents were hopeful that he came bearing good news. “Good day Mr. and Mrs. Hilling. I’m Doctor Nicholas Scratch”, he said “Good day Doctor Scratch. How is my son doing?” Tommy, his father asked “Well he unfortunately took a huge hit to the head when he landed but he was lucky that he was not within the killing radius when the grenade was thrown, he was just seven meters away and a little bit further would have been a different story now. The nurse assigned to their platoon for the fight had a lot on her plate and so she didn’t attend to him on time and that’s when he lost a lot more blood than necessary. So far he is not responding to any of the tests we’ve taken and it’s likely that he would fall into a comma or worst case scenario brain damage”, the doctor finishes off. “So how certain are you that these are the likely scenarios?” Tommy asked grimly “Well we might just have to wait and see how he responds to the treatments and we will still conduct various tests to ascertain the damage to his body and brain and might I say that things are not relatively looking good for him”, he answered Looking over to his son, Tommy plays all the plausible scenarios in his mind and he dreads the outcome of all those scenarios. “What would be your suggestion if my son ends up with brain damage?” Lisa, Tommy’s mother asks “Well from experience I’ve realized that it is much more excruciating for the family members to see their loved one’s strapped to a machine on life support. I suggest that it would be the benefit of both the patients and the families not to even go through with such plans; it is easier to end the misery as soon as possible and not elongate it. It is rather unlikely that the patient recovers from the brain damage and it would take a miracle for all the brain cells to function normally and one might wait an awful long time for a miracle that might not eventually happen.”, he responds with a voice void of emotions, he was always able hide his emotions from others. Tom had been a good friend of his and it was devastating to even think of seeing the young lad go. “Alright thank you for the information and your time”, Tommy says shaking the doctors’ hands “It’s my job Mr. Hilling. Take care”, and with that he left. Lisa crumbles to the ground sobbing uncontrollably; Tommy goes over to comfort his wife, rocking her in his arms and whispering soothing words in her ears. He comforts her and wishes to also be comforted with the same act; they were in for a bumpy ride.                                                                                       ⁕⁕⁕ The evening had begun with fierce winds that threatened to be accompanied by a vicious storm. It was definitely not a safe night to be out late but Tom couldn’t get out of the office early to meet up with Alex. Taking the long drive home he suddenly wished he’d taken the short cut and before he knew it droplets of rain began to descend on the window of his range rover. The rain picked up its pace and soon enough it was full on outburst making the clearing ahead almost impossible to see. After almost an hour of battling with the downpour he finally made it home and was only a little over two hours late, Alex was gonna be furious. He made his way into their house and called out her name. No response. He looked round the house and wondered if she had gone back on the plan, he made his way to the kitchen and saw a note on the fridge and immediately went pale. Slowing slipping into consciousness, he felt a soft hand combing in and out of his hair and he wondered what the hell happened and who those hands belonged to. Blinking away the blurriness in his eyes, he was met with a familiar pair of pale green eyes and golden locks he could recognize from anywhere. “Alex?” he croaked. He stared into the eyes of his beloved wife and wondered how even in death she could still look this beautiful. As though he finally realized what was going on, he jerked upright and surveyed his surroundings. It was a sight to behold; one might even say it had a beaut view. Flowers ranging from lilies to daffodils to even hibiscus were littered across the vast land, these created a combination of colors that gave it a more serene look. Birds of different kind were roaming in the air like they didn’t give a care in the world, they were free and weren’t afraid to express their excitements by chirping loudly. Tall, large trees with fruits all over were sectioned on various angles and it almost looked like a plantation. The grasses were so soft and felt like fur under his fingers; it was like he was sitting on plush upholstery and not the ground. Searching round the area, he once again settled upon a set of pale green eyes that were etched with pure happiness. “Wh-Ho-Where is this?” he asked fumbling to find his bearing. “I don’t know, I just found myself here and it’s like a garden of some sort but this place is amazing Tom”, she told him. “How do you mean?” he asked. “There’s just so much nature to behold, so many new creatures to learn about and don’t even get me started on the surrealness of it all”, she says beaming from ear to ear. “But how exactly am I here with you?” His face drains as realization finally hits him. “Oh no the explosion”. “What explosion Tom?” “In my last battle with Joe, Joe gets killed and I’m on the ground holding his body and the next thing I know I’m being thrown miles away from his body and landing really really hard on the ground before everything went black”. “Oh no poor Helena and Junior”. “Really? That’s your only take from my tragic story?” “Sorry but you didn’t let me finish. If that were the case then shouldn’t you be in the hospital?” “Yeah I should. Considering how hard I hit my head, I probably lost a lot of blood and I’m either in a coma or I’ve suffered brain damage. The question now is why am I here? Am I already dead?” “Well if you are then that’s great news because we can finally be together again”. “Well yeah but I feel I still have a choice on whether I die or not. Do I stay here or walk towards the light?” “Will you stay with me Tom?”                                                                                          ⁕⁕⁕ Tom’s situation had only gotten worse and Nicholas was only convinced that they would have to put him on life support considering his parents decide to go through with the torment. His vitals were stable and the tests had only confirmed his speculations. Taking his time with the young lad, he decides to say some few words before his unknowing fate. “Hey lad, so uhm I don’t know how this works but I’m just gonna go ahead. I just want you to know that you’ve helped me and my wife a lot and I only wish I could have appreciated you more while you were still alive. I know you are not gone yet and I’m probably overreacting but no one knows what would happen tomorrow. I bet Alex would be so proud of you and what you have achieved and I’m sure she won’t blame you for her death. I just want you to know that wherever you find yourself, you shouldn’t be ruled by so much anger and hate, sure the world took your love but there were so many other things you could have discovered and I hope you haven’t closed all the doors to your heart yet. I’m pretty sure wherever you are now, you might have even had a chance to see Alex and you guys would be all over each other by now. I hope you both finally get the happily ever after we all dream of. So I’m guessing this is a final goodbye then, have a nice life wherever you end up lad. You mattered.” With that he wipes away some stray tears and makes his way out of the room. Nick is stopped before he got far, he looks back and realizes that Tom’s fragile hands are holding his sleeves “Hey doc. Where do you think you’re going?”, Tom says “Was going to prepare your funeral casket, didn’t you notice my solemn dress?”, Nicholas says with amusement. Tom laughs at the remark and ends up releasing a horrible cough “Hey watch it kiddo, you shouldn’t be doing that right now”, Nick says with concern “It’s your fault not mine” “Okay alright I take full responsibility”, Nick says while removing an injection from his pockets “What’s that?”, Tom asks sounding suspicious “It’s the final product for the poison to take effect”, Nick says with a serious face. Tom looks at him genuinely horrified and tries to swat his hands away “Relax relax, I’m only joking. It’s just a little something to make you sleep, you need all the rest you can get”, Nick said laughing “Oh okay then I can’t object to warranted sleep”. Nick injects Tom’s drip and soon after everything becomes blurry before Tom finally surrenders to the darkness.